“You can come down now.” Hana stared at the door, her arms wrapped around her stomach.
Keishin rushed down the steps, dropping the kitchen knife. He pulled her into his arms. “Are you okay?”
“No.” Hana crumbled against his chest.
“That creature…” He held her tight. “That was the Shiikuin?”
“One of many. They want the missing choice.”
“I heard that part. And their threat.”
“That was not a threat.” Hana stepped out from the circle of his arms. “That was a promise.”
“Then we have to find the choice. Fast. Your father must have taken the choice with him. If we find him, we’ll find the choice.” Keishin checked his watch. “It’s just a few more hours until midnight. We’ll have answers soon.”
“We?You still want to do this? Even after seeing the Shiikuin?”
“That thing will be back in two days. I’m not about to abandon you now.”
“Kei…there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Hana, there’s nothing you can say that will make me change my mind.” Keishin affixed what he hoped looked like a convincing smile onto his face. “Besides, I’m getting used to jumping into puddles.”
“Puddles cannot take us to my grandmother’s teahouse.”
“How do we get there?”
“We need to share a bed.”
—
They lay next to each other on Hana’s futon, their bodies close enough to feel the other’s warmth. Keishin stared up at the ceiling, trying to summon the most boring lecture he could think of. He imagined himself back in high school, sitting in the back of his history classroom, making up math problems in his head to keep his eyes open. It wasn’t that he found the Renaissance uninteresting, it was just that Mr. Whitecotton’s idea of teaching was to read from their textbook until the bell rang. But not even the memory of his old teacher’s nasal droning could weigh his eyelids down this evening. The Shiikuin’s voices echoed over Elizabeth’s Golden Age, denying him sleep. Keishin sat up and groaned. “This is impossible. I can’t sleep.”
“Lie down.” Hana gently drew him back next to her. “And try not to think about anything. Sleep will come.”
Keishin rested his head on a pillow and sighed. “Are you sure we can’t just dive into a pond or a puddle?”
“I have never met a man like you.” Hana turned to face him. “You are unlike anyone who has stepped through the pawnshop’s door.”
A lock of silver hair slipped over Keishin’s eyes. Hana ran her fingers through his hair, pushing it from his face. Keishin stiffened, inhaling sharply. Hana met his startled gaze. A smile crinkled his eyes and softened them. Keishin took Hana’s hand, gently pressing it to his cheek. “In what way?” he whispered, the corner of his lips grazing her palm.
“I…uh…I’m sorry.” She stared and blinked at him, withdrawing her hand. “What did you say?”
A dimple dug into Keishin’s cheek. “In what way am I different from your other clients?”
Hana blushed. She did not bother to hide it. “All our clients, even if they do not know it, come looking for help. You are the first one to ever offer it. You jump into the unknown without thinking twice and do not hesitate to take my word when I tell you that the way to find my grandmother is through a dream. You are a good man, Kei.” She laced her fingers over her stomach. “Perhaps too good.”
“I didn’t realize that wanting to do the decent thing was a character flaw.” Keishin propped himself on his elbow.
“It is not a flaw. It is a weakness. It makes it easier for people to hurt you.”
“The only motives and actions I am responsible for are my own. How people choose to respond to that is their problem.”
“It becomes your problem when they cause you pain. I have seen enough tears in the pawnshop to know that this is true in both our worlds.”
“Do those tears include your own?”
She turned her back to him. “We should try to sleep.”
